Press Start To End
by wolfiecaw
Summary: My piece for the Please Insert Coin! zine. Set during the fifth trial. - Chiaki expected death, but she didn't expect this.


[Note: Just want to say thanks to my wonderful friend for being my beta for this piece, I couldn't have written this without her.]

Chiaki was sweating. She didn't know she could do that. Sweat was weird and new. It felt so hot, burning, yet the room was rather cold. Her whole body ached in an awkward way, almost nauseous. Chiaki could feel her legs trembling, her limbs trying so hard to keep her up for just a little longer. Her program must've been more complex than she thought. For a second she thought about her creator, imagining them in the dark, clicking away at a computer and staying up until ungodly hours of the night to make her this… alive. But now was not the time for such thoughts, not when the people that called her a friend were all looking at her in disbelief. Not when the trial room seemed to turn dull and suffocating in a matter of seconds.

"H-hey Chiaki? You're crying…" Souda pointed out, extending his finger toward her as though she were a monster. His voice was more shaky than observant though, as he couldn't hide the way he was truly feeling. He took quick glances at Sonia for some comfort, but his face remained tear-streaked. It was then that Chiaki realized she'd mistaken her own tears for sweat.

"Huh, I guess I am…" she mumbled, raising her quivering fingers up to her face. She gently touched her tears, which were warm like she expected. Paired with the heat of being anxious, it only made sense to Chiaki that she was sweating. However, she knew that just wasn't the case. She knew it was tears, but didn't want to think so. Everybody was right, she was in denial.

"Bad actors always cry through their lies! Isn't that right, Chiaki? Just tell us you're lying already!" Hinata filled the quiet room with his loud voice, though it was not strong like usual. His voice was instead timid, begging and hoping that Chiaki was not who she said she was. However, he was in denial as well. He knew Chiaki was telling a truth.

"Come on, let's just get this over with. You don't have to pretend, Chiaki," Akane yelled in annoyance. She sighed heavily and furrowed her eyebrows, trying to look intimidating. Behind her fire, though, was a swarm of panic. Fuyuhiko had a similar reaction.

"Nobody has time for this, Chiaki! Stop it!" he cried. His emotions were a lot more apparent, and he was crying like Souda. However, his tears were angry. He didn't understand why Chiaki had built up this whole ruse, nobody did.

"You're still our friend, right?" Sonia asked, her usual elegance shattering. She seemed to have diminished into the most fragile person there. Her wobbly voice was just as apparent as everyone else's, as was her denial. She had to reassure herself. Everybody did.

Monokuma was eerily silent during all the commotion; perhaps he enjoyed the chaos. He sat in his chair, watching the group of teenagers with emotionless eyes. Chiaki took notice of his absence in the conversation, and looked up at him. For a second, she broke her dreary character and gave the bear a sharp glare. But she knew she couldn't be mad at him, there were so many other people to blame. And even then, she knew she could only blame herself. Her tears continued to stream down her cheeks.

With the blink of an eye, Chiaki was back in that dark room. She had no idea what was going on, and thoughts whirred in her head. However, the thoughts didn't stick around or form. The panic caused by the fire and creepy music that was bursting her ears had gotten to her. With no time to think, she did the inevitable. A few mindless steps forward and Komaeda was dead; the poison grenade's image was stained into her mind. She fell into his trap, but was it even his? No, she had to stop blaming people. Tears fell of off Chiaki's chin. She had to forget about the fire, the plan, everything. It was her fault, she was created to do this. In that case, it's her creator's fault. They made her do this. No, they didn't. Chiaki hiccuped softly as she tried to convince herself it was all and only her fault, which it was. She did this, not Monokuma or Komaeda or her creator. Only she could have created the feelings she harbored for the group. The confession should've never happened, or if it did, it should've been easier. Still, everyone's words of hope and desperation ran through her mind along with the memories.

"I'm the traitor, Sonia, how could I be your friend?" Chiaki replied through choked sobs. She tried to put on her best smile, but it came out awkwardly. Hinata stared in confusion, his face twisted in shock. However, there was a slight layer of disgust on it too. He knew who she really was, he knew the truths.

"How could you lie to us… All those times… together…" Sonia fell to the ground dramatically. Souda's legs jerked, as if he were going to rush over. However, he knew that wouldn't be appropriate, not right now. For he, too, felt like collapsing. Sure, he was wiping his tears, but his free hand still gripped his chest.

"It was to blend in, like a traitor should," Chiaki insisted, her words coming out as a slight scream. Memories of everyone's arrival on the island flashed through her head. The sandy paradise's warmth wrapped around her, and so did the smiles of her new friends that were more vibrant than the sun. Her throat burned now, as if she had swallowed sand.

"Shut up. Shut up! First Peko, and now you? I don't even care anymore, what the _fuck_?!" Fuyuhiko shouted, though his voice sounded muffled. His hand was covering his mouth to prevent tears from falling in. As much as he wanted to present his usual tough guy façade, this was too much for him too handle.

"I'm different than Peko. I never cared about you, or anyone. I did this for myself," Chiaki refuted. She was thrown back to the second island, and found herself in the library. She had been trying to help the others remain calm after the first murder while also trying to figure out the mystery behind the Twilight Syndrome Murder Case game that intrigued her so much. Her heart began to beat faster and faster.

"Come on, Chiaki! That's bullshit! You… you were so… you helped… Argh!" Akane yelled in frustration. She was so distraught that she stumbled on her words, though she kept her cool better than the others. However, her fists were clenched far too tightly and her knuckles only got paler by the second.

"I helped only to keep up the ruse," Chiaki finished Akane's sentence. She thought about how she made a point to visit everyone in the infirmary after they caught the Despair Disease. She knew she couldn't get sick, so she would sometimes hold hands with those afflicted. They wouldn't remember anyway, so it was a win-win; everybody was comforted in some way. Chiaki actually did begin to sweat at that point, her palms getting clammy.

"What about the fun times? The amusement park? Remember, you guys made me go on that stupid rollercoaster… if it meant nothing, why'd you do it?! Huh?! Explain, Chiaki!" Souda snarled, more tears streaming down his face as he clenched his teeth. He looked like a wounded animal.

"Like I said to Sonia, it was… to fit in. I had… no fun at all… with you fools," Chiaki mumbled, trying to make her face look demeaning. Her eyebrows curved upward and she wore an eerie grin. However, it was a shaky one, as she remembered how much fun that rollercoaster was. She remembered hearing Souda's screams and everyone else's laughs. She remembered the happiness she somehow felt when she had hung around with the others there.

"You've got that wrong! Maybe you are the traitor, maybe Komaeda's luck got it right… but that's not the lie here. The lie is that you never cared about us! The lie is that you weren't our friends! You're just telling us these things so it'll be easier on you, isn't that right, Chiaki Nanami?!" Hinata cried, pointing his finger at Chiaki. She froze, her shivering ceased. She continued to grin, though. Hinata always did have a way with words.

"Oh Hinata, can't you accept that… you're not… right… for… once," Chiaki mumbled. She suddenly remembered that she'd been crying ever since the reveal. It was somehow easy to forget that there was liquid pouring from her eyes, since it'd been like that for so long. Even so, she remembered how she felt when Komaeda had died. She remembered how Hinata felt, poor Hinata. She didn't want to see him cry like that ever again. So she turned to Monokuma.

"Aren't you going to bring down your gavel? I've confessed. Get it over with," she asked. She tried to infuse mockery in her tone, but she couldn't remove the heartbreak in it. Monokuma did as asked. With one ear shattering smash, the red button was pressed. Monokuma grabbed onto Chiaki's hoodie and began dragging her away.

"No! Chiaki! Don't go, not before you stop lying! Not before you say you didn't mean it, that it was a joke! Chiaki! You're one of my dearest friends!" Hinata yelled. He tried to run after her, reach out to her, but she was too far gone. Now he was crying, feeling like a failure. Both of his best friends gone. The sounds of Chiaki being dragged to her death echoed in his mind, but not as loudly as her last words.

"Game over, Hinata."


End file.
